Discovered and promoted byValery Gergiev, she began her career at theMariinsky Theatre, collaborating with the conductor in the theater and performances elsewhere. She was noticed globally after playing Donna Anna in Mozart'sDon Giovanni at the 2002 Salzburg Festival. She had been known for her rendition oflyric andcoloratura soprano roles yet later proceeded into heavier 19th-century romantic roles, such as Leonora inIl trovatore and the role of Lady Macbeth inMacbeth. Since 2016, she has turned her focus toverismo repertoire.
Under Gergiev's guidance, in 1994 Netrebko made her operatic stage debut at the Mariinsky at age 22 as Susanna inThe Marriage of Figaro despite initially being billed as Barbarina.[2] In the same year, she also performed as the Queen of the Night inThe Magic Flute with the Riga Independent Opera Avangarda Akadēmija under conductorDavid Milnes.[4][5] She subsequently became associated with the Mariinsky Theatre.
In February 2004, she returned to Vienna forDon Giovanni,[18] and was subsequently invited as the guest performer at theVienna Opera Ball, where she returned in 2007.[22][23] She then starred in a Japan tour ofLa bohème inRobert Carsen's staging as Musetta conducted bySeiji Ozawa,[24] and subsequently returned toSan Francisco Opera in the same role.[25] After withdrawing from two engagements, citing exhaustion,[26] she returned to scene in November inMetropolitan Opera'sLa bohème as Musetta.[27] In summer 2005, she starred in the premiere ofWilly Decker's new staging ofLa traviata in Salzburg, conducted byCarlo Rizzi.[28] In December 2005, she sang Gilda inRigoletto at the Metropolitan Opera, and was featured in the premiere ofOtto Schenk's new production ofDon Pasquale and Japan tour ofDon Giovanni in the same season.[29][30][31]
She sang Elvira inI puritani at the Metropolitan Opera in January 2007, and on 30 May 2007, Netrebko made herCarnegie Hall debut withDmitri Hvorostovsky and theOrchestra of St. Luke's, which was originally scheduled on 2 March 2006 but she postponed due to not feeling artistically ready.[33] She then performed Donna Anna at Covent Garden, but withdrew from some performances due to illness.[34] She appeared at theLast Night of the Proms on 8 September of that year where she performed excerpts fromLa sonnambula andGiuditta, and the lied "Morgen!" byRichard Strauss withJoshua Bell.[35] In the fall of 2007 she reprised her role as Juliette inRoméo et Juliette at the Metropolitan Opera.
In January 2008 she performed Violetta at theRoyal Opera House, Covent Garden to triumphant acclaim on the opening night,[37] oppositeJonas Kaufmann andDmitri Hvorostovsky in performances conducted byMaurizio Benini. However, she cancelled three subsequent performances due to suffering a bronchial condition. In May 2008, she made her Paris Opera debut inBellini'sI Capuleti e i Montecchi at theOpéra Bastille, withJoyce DiDonato as Romeo. In her first performance after her maternity leave, Netrebko sang Lucia inLucia di Lammermoor when it opened at the Mariinsky Theatre in Saint Petersburg on 14 January 2009, in a production from theScottish Opera led by John Doyle.[38] She then sang the same role in January and February 2009 at the Metropolitan Opera. Netrebko appeared as Giulietta inI Capuleti e i Montecchi at theRoyal Opera House in Spring 2009, and as Violetta inLa traviata in June 2009 at theSan Francisco Opera.
She presented the Deutscher Medienpreis 2009 to ChancellorAngela Merkel and sang Strauss' "Cäcilie" at the ceremony in Baden-Baden on 9 February 2010.[39]
Through April and May 2010, she made a series of appearances at the Vienna State Opera inLa bohème,Carmen,Manon. Originally scheduled inI puritani as well, she cancelled the appearance citing illness.[40][41] She starred inLaurent Pelly's newManon production at the Royal Opera, and sang Juliette at the Salzburg Festival.[42][43] In October 2010, she returned to New York's Metropolitan Opera for Norina inDon Pasquale,[44] the matinee performance on 13 November of which was broadcast nationwide byPBS.[45]
On 2 April 2011, she sang the title role of Gaetano Donizetti'sAnna Bolena at theVienna State Opera for a sold-out premiere there, and the repeat performance on 5 April 2011 was broadcast live to cinemas around the world.[46][47] On 7 December 2011, she opened the new season atLa Scala in Milan, making her house debut, as Donna Anna inDon Giovanni.[48][49] She has the distinction of being invited to appear in three consecutive opening night new productions at the Metropolitan Opera:Anna Bolena in 2011,L'elisir d'amore in 2012, andEugene Onegin in 2013. Her performance as Lady Macbeth in the Metropolitan's 2014 fall season's production ofMacbeth, a revival ofAdrian Noble's 2007 production, drew critical praise and demonstrated her voice is still expanding in range and volume.[50][51] She continued her expansion into heavier Verdi roles at the Met the following year, singing the role of Leonora inIl trovatore to acclaim from both critics and audiences.[52][53]
In April 2016, Netrebko announced her withdrawal from productions of Bellini'sNorma at the Royal Opera House's 2016/17 season and the Metropolitan Opera's 2017/18 season due to the change in her voice.[56][57][58][59] The vacancies were filled respectively bySonya Yoncheva andSondra Radvanovsky.[60][61][62]She then made her debut asElsa inLohengrin at theSemperoper in Dresden, and then went to Saint Petersburg for the same role at the Mariinsky Theatre.[63][64]
In 2018, she performed in both gala concerts at theRed Square on 13 June and at theBolshoi Theatre on 14 July, respectively commemorating the opening and closing of the2018 FIFA World Cup.[70][71] On 8 September 2018 she took part in the inauguration gala concert ofZaryadye Concert Hall in Moscow, which was streamed onMedici.tv.[72][73] In February 2019, she opened the 2019Vienna Opera Ball.[74] She was featured in the opening ceremony of2019 European Games in Minsk on 21 June and inaugurated the first concert season of the Congress Hall at the Yekaterinburg Expo on 30 August 2019.[75][76]
In June 2020, Netrebko performed highlights from Verdi'sDon Carlo in reduced concert form at theSemperoper as part of its "Aufklang!" series which reopened the theatre after the firstCOVID-19 lockdown in Germany.[77] She went on debuting at theTeatro di San Carlo in Naples for semi-stagedTosca with Yusif Eyvazov andLudovic Tézier.[78] In September 2020 she had to self-isolate after her co-star inDon Carlo at the Bolshoi Theatre,Ildar Abdrazakov, was tested positive forCOVID-19. She was soon hospitalized in Moscow, being treated for COVID-19-related pneumonia for about a week.[79][80][81]
On 26 February 2022, following the 2022Russian invasion of Ukraine, Netrebko released a statement in which she voiced her opposition to the war but disagreed with forcing one to voice one's political opinion.[82] Despite her statement, she faced pressure from performance institutions for failing to distance herself from Russian president Vladimir Putin. On 1 March 2022, she said she would "retire from concert life until further notice".[83][84] Immediately prior to this announcement, she withdrew from opera productions in Milan and Zürich,[85] while theBavarian State Opera cancelled existing engagements with both her andValery Gergiev.[86] Two days later, the Metropolitan Opera removed her from the upcomingTurandot, replacing her with the UkrainianLiudmyla Monastyrska in the title role,[87][88][89][90] and fromDon Carlos in the 2023 season.[91][92] TheBerlin State Opera andFestspielhaus Baden-Baden also cancelled her appearances, with the latter not ruling out future cooperation.[93][94] Finn McRedmond ofThe Irish Times said that such a "wholesale boycott of Russia" would be "a dangerous departure from Western values".[95]
On 30 March 2022, Netrebko released another statement where she announced plans to resume her public performances from May 2022, and repeated her condemnation of the war in Ukraine,[a] distancing herself from Putin.[97][98]
I expressly condemn the war on Ukraine and my thoughts are with the victims of this war and their families. My position is clear. I am not a member of any political party nor am I allied with any leader of Russia. I acknowledge and regret that past actions or statements of mine could have been misinterpreted. In fact, I have met President Putin only a handful of times in my entire life, most notably on the occasion of receiving awards in recognition of my art or at the Olympics opening ceremony. I have otherwise never received any financial support from the Russian Government, and live and am a tax resident in Austria. I love my homeland of Russia and only seek peace and unity through my art. After taking my announced break, I will resume performing in late May, initially in Europe.[99]
Netrebko was denounced as a traitor of Russia after her second statement,[100] with her Russian performances cancelled and a Duma deputy suggesting that she resign from her Russian titles.[101][102][103] Berlin State Opera manager Matthias Schulz later announced that he had been contacting Netrebko about performances scheduled in 2023.[104]
In June 2022, Netrebko filed a labor grievance against the Met with the assistance of theAmerican Guild of Musical Artists.[105][106] In March 2023, an arbitrator ordered the Met to pay her over $200,000 for the cancelled performances while she pay a $30,000 penalty for making "highly inappropriate" statements following the invasion.[107]
Netrebko has often performed the titular character inAida, an Ethiopian princess, with face-darkening makeup, including her role debut at theSalzburg Festival in 2017, and at theMetropolitan Opera in 2018—despite the opera company's 2015 pledge to eliminate the use of face-darkening makeup in its productions.[126] In June 2019 she defended such choice in the comments under her Instagram post for a performance.[127][128]
In July 2022, Netrebko and theArena di Verona Festival faced heavy criticism for performing inblackface, following the release of publicity photos for a performance ofAida.[129] Subsequently, American sopranoAngel Blue canceled her upcoming performances ofLa traviata at the Festival, citing the company's insistence on maintaining the practice.[130] Blue's cancellation initiated heated discussion.[131][132] Yusif Eyvazov called Blue's decision "disgusting,"[133] while mezzo-sopranoGrace Bumbry offered a conciliatory perspective.[134]
Other notable singers to have publicly spoken out against the use of blackface in Opera include the mezzo-sopranoJamie Barton[135] who named Netrebko directly, andStephanie Blythe, who suggested an abstention from performing operas that have typically featured white singers made up to appear as other ethnicities.[136]
Responding to the controversy surrounding blackface, the Arena di Verona Festival claimed it is "very hard to change" the production to avoid the use of blackface (this staging dates from 2002).[137] The Festival also stated that when Blue signed her contract forLa traviata, this staging ofAida was already planned and she should already have known that blackface was to be used.[138]
Netrebko serves as an honorary director of theRussian Children's Welfare Society and has featured in several editions of "Petroushka Ball", the major fund raiser of the charity.[139][140] In 2007, she was announced to be an ambassador forSOS Children's Villages in Austria, and a sponsor for the Tomilino village in Russia.[141] She has been supporting the association "projekt Anna - KinderhilfeKaliningrad e.V." since 2005, and became its patron in 2008.[142][143] In May 2012, she and her then-partner Erwin Schrott jointly founded the charitable foundation "Anna Netrebko and Erwin Schrott 4 Kids", aiming to promote education, art, culture and youth welfare.[144][145][146]
As of 2022, there has been a debate over her association with Russian presidentVladimir Putin.[149] In 2012 she appeared on a list of 499 celebrities endorsing Putin in the2012 Russian presidential election alongsideValery Gergiev andDenis Matsuev.[150] She later explained this as a gesture of recognition of Putin's support for the arts.[151] After a blogger published that she also appeared on a declaration of support for Putin in 2018[152] she stated several times that she did not sign this declaration, that her name was kept from the 2012 list without her approval and that she did not even participate in the vote.[151][153][154]
In 2011, she rejected claims that she and Putin had formerly been romantically involved, though she jokingly said "I'd have loved to have been ... he's a very attractive man. Such a strong, male energy."[155]
Following the2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, Netrebko has held varying public stances. In late February, she said on social media that she opposed the invasion, but subsequently described people who forced her to express her political position as "human s***s" who "are as evil as blind aggressors."[149] After her second statement on 30 March 2022, where she repeated her condemnation of the war in Ukraine, distancing herself from Putin.[161] The Putin-controlled RussianDuma denounced her atraitor to her nation.[162]
Since January 2023, she was among the public figures who were sanctioned by theGovernment of Ukraine.[163]
On 15 May 2025, about 100 Vitsche Berlin supporters demonstrated outside theBerlin State Opera to condemn performances by Anna Netrebko in light of her ties to theKremlin.[164]
Netrebko applied for Austrian citizenship in Vienna in March 2006.[167] In response to the backlash in her native country, she cited the cumbersome and humiliating process of obtaining visas as a Russian citizen for her many performances abroad as the main reason for the decision.[168][169] In late July, theCouncil of Ministers approved the application for her "special merits",[170] despite the fact that she neither spoke German nor lived in Austria.[171]
Netrebko with her husband Yusif Eyvazov and Azerbaijan's PresidentIlham Aliyev in May 2019
Netrebko started a relationship with Italian bass-baritoneSimone Alberghini when they met during performances ofRigoletto at the Washington National Opera in 1999.[172] She announced their engagement but did not consider marrying due to a busy schedule.[173] In May 2007 their relationship was confirmed as ended.[174]
In December 2007, Netrebko became engaged to Uruguayan bass-baritoneErwin Schrott, whom she first met during a collaboration in 2003.[175] In April 2008, she announced their marriage,[176] but their wedding never in fact took place.[177] Their son, Tiago Aruã, was born on 5 September 2008 in Vienna.[178][179] On 25 November 2013, the couple announced their separation,[180][181] after several months of leading largely separate lives.
In February 2014, during rehearsals for a staging ofManon Lescaut in Rome, Netrebko began a relationship withAzerbaijani tenorYusif Eyvazov [de], her co-star in that opera. Five months later, the couple announced their engagement.[182][183] They married in Vienna on 29 December 2015. Their official wedding ceremony took place at thePalais Coburg, and the following celebration at theGartenpalais Liechtenstein welcomed 180 guests in attendance, includingPlácido Domingo.[184] Netrebko announced their separation on 26 June 2024.[185]
Netrebko has apartments in Saint Petersburg, Vienna, and New York City. In 2008, upon her pregnancy, she looked for a new residence in Vienna.[186] That year, she purchased and renovated apenthouse apartment at Franziskanerplatz.[187] The renovation was not finished and she still lived in her original apartment by 2010.[188] The building was evacuated in February 2010 due to acute danger of collapsing and only reopened two months later.[189] In November 2009, she moved into a new apartment aboveLincoln Square, Manhattan, where she combined two units for additional space.[190][191]
Netrebko won 2006Bambi Award in the classical music category.[192] She was awarded the "World Star" of the BraVo International Professional Music Awards 2018.[193]
She won the 2007 Singer of the Year and the 2008 Female Artist of Year in theClassical Brit Awards.[194][195] She was identified by the journalMusical America as "a genuine superstar for the 21st century" and was named Musician of the Year for 2008.[196] Netrebko was one of the recipients of Leading Ladies Award 2012 awarded byMadonna magazine.[197] She received another Leading Ladies Award in the category of Culture in 2016.[198] She was presented anOpera News Award in April 2016.[199]
In September 2022, she received an "Österreichischer Musiktheaterpreis" as Best Female Leading Role for her portrayal of Lady Macbeth in “Macbeth” inWiener Staatsoper.[209][210]
On 18 September 2021, Netrebko celebrated her 50th birthday with a concert held in theKremlin in Moscow. The concert featured friends and stars as Eyvazov,Rolando Villazon,Plácido Domingo orMichael Volle. Putin congratulated from afar throughDmitri Peskov, because he had been exposed to Corona cases.[215] Part of the proceeds from ticket sales will be donated to the Arithmetic of Good charity fund, which helps orphans.[216]
